Letter 265 (377)
THE FATHERS SPEAK
BASIL TO EULOGIOS, ALEXANDER AND
ADELPHOKRATlON, EGYPTIAN BISHOPS IN EXILE,
LETTER 265 (377)
We discover in all things how great is the providence of the good God toward his Churches. Some events are ominous and seem to happen without a purpose, but even fortuitous events are ordained to the utility of the greater number, in the wisdom of God and His justice, which cannot possibly be traced. See this: the Lord has raised up your love from the regions of Egypt to bring it into the heart of Palestine and establish it, as was typified by Israel of old, whom he exiled into the land of the Assyrians in order to extinguish their idolatry at the advent of the saints. Now we have found by reflection that the Lord, in placing this ordeal before you, has opened unto you, through exile, the stadium of blessed contests, and has bestowed upon those who happen to meet you the gift of a clear model of the principles leading to salvation. We have learned, through the grace of God, the correctness of your faith, your solicitude for the brethren, and that you do not negligently by-pass things of common interest or which are necessary for salvation, but give precedence to whatever promotes the edification of the Churches.
So we have sent the beloved Elpidios, our fellow servant of God [OUVOtO::Kovov], to carry this letter to you and, as much as he is capable, to inform you of what we may have overlooked in our letter. What has most encouraged us in our desire of fellowship with you is the report of your pious zeal for the right doctrine; neither the countless libels nor the variety of sophisms have shaken the steadfastness of your heart. You have denounced those who innovate in matters of apostolic dogma; you have not accepted to remain silent on the harm they do. We found that aU who cleave to the peace of the Lord were greatly afflicted by the manifold novelties of Apollinaris of Laodicaea .. . . His discourses on God, do they not abound in impious teachings and in the older impiety of that fool Sabellius, reviving it in recent
Priests and Hierarchs: The Arian PerseclI1ion
treatises? ... Renewing past errors, Apollinaris announces now the restoration of the Temple, the minute observance of the legal ritual, the figurative High Priest after the true High
Priest [ef. Heb 7:15-17], the guilt-offerings [1 Sm 6:3, Lv 14-19] after the Lamb of God has taken away the sins of the world [In 1 :29], partial baptisms
[ ~cxT['[[a[lCX'fcx [lEplKa: anabaptism?], after the one baptism [Eph 4:5J, the ashes of a heifer [Nb 19:1-10] to sprinkle the Church which through faith in Christ has neither spot nor wrinkle nor any such blemish [Eph 5: 27], the rite of purification of lepers [Lv 14:2J, after the imperviousness to injury after the Resurrection, the offering of jealousy [rrpompopa ~f1A.O
'fU1tLCX<;, Nb 5: 14-15J, when humans shall neither wed nor be wed [viz. in the resurrection, Mt 23 :30], the showbreads
[ap'fOl rrpo9EoECUC;, Ex 25:30J, after the bread from heaven [In 6:32], lighted lamps, after Him who is the True Light
[In 1:19]! After all, if the precepts of the Law have been abrogated by our dogmas, then it is clear that the dogmas of Christ would be nullified if the precepts of the Law were restored!
BASIL TO EUSEBIUS, BISHOP OF SAMOSATA,
IN EXILE, LETTER 268 (378)
The Lord has shown that even in our time He would not abandon His saints and that His great and mighty hand would protect the life of Your Sanctity. Your case is nearly like the case of the holy man who remained unharmed in the belly of a whale, or of the God-fearing men who remained alive in a furious fire [Jon 1: 17; Dn 3]. Whereas war, as I hear, surrounds you on all parts, the Lord has preserved
Your Piety safe and sound, so let Almighty God keep watch over you-a prospect most desirable for us if we are still alive, or at any rate, for others who await your return as if
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it were their own salvation, I am confident that the God who loves men [6 <!>lAav{}pCU1toC;], heedful of the tears of the Churches and of the moaning of all who moan for you, shall keep you in this life, until he grants the petitions of those who pray to him night and day. What was done among you until the arrival of our dear brother Libanios, our fellow minister [auvcllaK6vou], we heard from him well enough when he passed by our place, but we are eager to know what has happened since, for we have heard that in the meantime many worse calamities have occurred over there. May we hear from you as soon as possible, or at least through our pious brother and fellow priest Paul [OU\l'Jl:pE.· a~u,,[EpoU] when he returns; and may your life remain safely and soundly preserved, as we wish! Because we have learned that all the roads are full of gangsters and deserters, we dared not entrust anything in the hands of this brother, for fear we might be the inVOluntary cause of his being murdered. If the Lord grants us a measure of respite, we shall hurry to send you one of our people to visit with you and report unto us whatever happened in your region.
Gregory of Nazianzus, prevented from taking possession of his Church of Sasima in the southwestern eparchy of Cappadocia, and unwilling, after the death of his father, to occupy the throne of Nazianzus otherwise than as a temporary caretaker, received a call to the Orthodox community of Constantinople. The congregation was overwhelmingly outnumbered by pagans, sectarians of every description, and the Ariam who had the favor of Emperor Valens. His police could keep an eye on the tiny church-we might say a "housechurch" -where the Orthodox gathered for the liturgical services; Gregory called it the "Anastasia." Valens was killed in a campaign against invaders from Scythia, or was murdered-anyway disappeared from the scene after 378. His successor Theodosius "the Great," devoted to the Nicene faith, was enthroned in the autumn of 380, but was not able
Priests and Hierarchs: The Arian Persecution
to assert his allthority immediately, or controL the populace and restore all acceptable order. In a letter addressed to a certain Theodoros-not otherwise identified unless he is the bishop of Tyana-Gregory writes how, as he was officiating at the baptism of catechumens on Great and HoLy Saturday, a mob of howling monks, shrieking females, and street hoodlums invaded the chapel and hurled stones at the congregation. The confirmation of Gregory on the patriarchal throne of Constantinople by the Council of 381 was bound to remain largely ineffectual as, sick at heart and weary, he decided to retire to his estate of Kerbela near Nazianzus.
GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS TO THEOOOROS, LETTER 77
(written during Holy Week 379 or 380) I hear that you have been dismayed by the news that we were assaulted by riotous monks and hoodlums. No wonder this appears to you intolerable; you have thus far escaped being beaten, and you have been spared our ordeals. As for us, used to being mistreated and to having our share of outrage, we may be expected to address Your Piety with the exhortations that old age teaches and reason suggests. Yes, these events are atrocious, more than atrocious; who would contest this? They have desecrated the altars, profaned the mysteries. As we stood between those to be baptized and those who were throwing stones at us, we had no recourse against the stoning except prayer. Virgins have given up modesty, monks have renounced decency, street-beggars have forsaken their lowly station in life. Anger has deprived them of all pity. Yet, in what we suffer, it is better to be patient and give to many an example of longanimity. Words do not persuade a crowd, but acts do, being a silent exhortation. We believe strongly in punishing evildoers; strongly, I say, because it is useful for the correction of others, but it is
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still better and more godly to endure stoically, Punishment bridles wickedness; but firmness under misfortune persuadf:s people to be good, and this is much better than simply not being wicked. Let us believe that a great occasion of clemency [qHAav9pcu1[(a] is offered to us, in order that we may obtain to be forgiven, and let us add goodness to goodness!
A seqllel to the events described in letter 77: The addressee, a certain Theoteknos, his wife, and his daughter were among the catechumens recently baptized by Gregory, and victims of the ruffians who had disrupted the ceremonya sacrilege calling for the rigors of the Law.' Gregory, writing to Theoteknos, seizes the occasion jor continuing his littLe homily on the superior values of Christian forgiveness.
GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS TO THEOTEKNOS, LETTER 78
(Shortly After Easter 379) We know that it is difficult to accept reasoning when injury is recent and when anger is still boijing. Anger and grief are blind, especially when irritation is justified. However, since we have been among those who have been injured and violently abused, and since we are equally indignant as yOll, we deserve for this not to be overlooked when we give you advice. We have been awfully mistreated; add, if you like, that no other man was mistreated as we have been. But this should not be a reason for injuring ourselves and being discouraged from devotion to our own detriment.
A wife is a great thing; a daughter a most precious good; not more precious, however, than our soul. Consider that yesterday you were made worthy of grace and that through
Priests and Hierarchs: The Arian Persecution
baptism you were purified of your sins; now there is a temptation which is not to be taken lightly: spoiling by a bloody vengeance the gift received and thus being in need of a second purification [possible allusion to a rite of sacramental penance]. Let us stop conspiring against ourselves, let us not reject our trust in God by a display of violence and of immoderate indignation against those who have mistreated us. The man [whom Theoteknos wanted to bring before the Law], let us deliver him to God and to yonder chastisement. As for us, we should render the Judge indulgent toward us by showing ourselves indulgent and, by forgiving, be forgiven. Let not some captious reasoning deceive you.
Someone may have legitimate reasons for calling another man to justice, and then he is without reproach. So also is one who delivers a law-breaker to the Law. There are the laws of Rome, but there are also our Christian laws. The fanner are inflexible, harsh, and bloody. Our laws are useful, humane, and they do not let us abuse angrily the guilty party.
We ought to abide by the latter and observe them, so that by doing small favors-and since life is short and of no value-we may receive from God big favors, His love. and our hope for the beyond.
Meantime Gregory of Nyssa, once the general situation in Cappadocia permitted it, was able to retake possession of his bishopric, from which he had been evicted and exiled under VaLens. In letter 6 he describes to bishop Ablabios his triumphal return to his episcopal town. Thunder and rainstorms raged during his journey-autumnaL equinox?described with gusto and a point of humor. The date is to be sought toward the time of the first CounciL of Constantinople
(381).
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GREGORY OF NYSSA TO BISHOP ABLABIOS, LETTER 6
The Lord has saved us, most likely on account of the prayers that yOll offered for us, and I shall relate to you this evident proof of God's kindness. We had already left behind us the region of Kelousa when there came suddenly a mass of clouds, and the clear sky turned into a thick darkness. A cold breeze, moist and wet, blowing from the clouds around our bodies, threatened to burst out into a rainstorm. On our left, continuous thundering tore through the sky, and flashes of lightning followed one another before each thunderclap.
The mountains ahead of us and behind us, on the right and on the left, were hidden by the clouds. But now the large cloud hanging over our head was chased sideways by a violent tempest, and we ourselves, like it happened miraculously to the Israelites [Ex 14:22}, being surrounded on all sides by water, passed on dry foot to Ouestena [unidentified].
Thoroughly tired, we took some rest with our mules. We were given by God signs of rainy weather ahead. After three or four hours of sufficient rest in that place, God divided once more the clouds of rain, and the chariot moved more easily on the surface of beaten clay, on which the wheels turned free1y. Now the road from this place to our town winds along the river, which is serving the entire region downstream. Small settlements, Dot much distant from one another, line the road. and this continuous suite of villages was full of people, who came to meet us and escort us, all of them showing forth a mixture of joy and tears. A light drizzle moistened the air. A little before our town, a cloud above our heads burst into a shower of rain, and this enabled us to proceed quite unnoticed. At the entrance gate of the colonnade [the 01"OaJ. aroused by the noise of the chariot on the hard pavement, a crowd of people, as driven by a secret force, closed on us round about, so that we could not even descend from the carriage, for no empty space could be found. The people could hardly be persuaded to allow us to descend and let the mules go on. These excessive
Priests and Hierarchs: The Arian Persecution
demonstrations of love and joy brought us to the point of fainting. Having advanced a little in the colonnade and approaching the door of the church, we saw something like a river of fire streaming into the church. It was the choirs of the virgins, holding wax-tapers, facing one another and singing at the entrance of the church, which was illumined by ardent torches. We entered the church, rejoicing and weeping with the people, who were affected as much as we ourselves, and the crowd being moved from joy to tears, I ordered the praying to be ended, and forthwith wrote this letter to Your Holiness, after which I paused to quench my thirst, and attended to my bodily needs!
Hierarchs' Frustrations Hierarchs are not continually "defining the word of truth" or leading the fight against heretics, but they cannot avoid being continually besieged by petitioners and claimants who expect the bishop to solve their personal problems, whether about seriolls matters or trifles, at times ludicrous. To these unwelcome distractions from rhe hierarchs' main task add the case of insubordinate clergy who take it upon themselves to act in their administration without much regard for canonical procedure: the canons are for specialists, and the bishop lives far away and is not always accessible!
Several leiters from Basil deal with abuses committed, more or less innocently, by "village bishops," the "chorepiscopi" (XCUPE.'n:(OKOTtOl). These were church leaders invested with quasi-episcopal authority, under the jurisdiction of the bishop and the metropolitan of {he ecclesiastical provillce. They were commonly addressed as episcopi, without restrictive qualification. It appears from Basil's letters 53 and 54 that some of these chorepiscopi illdulged in practices smacking of simony and ordained some unworthy candidates, in violation of regular canonical procedure.
THE FATHERS SPEAK
BASIL TO THE "VILLAGE BISHOPS" (XCUPE1tlOKOnOl),
LETTER 53 (written at the beginning of his episcopacy, 370-371) The sordid affair about which I am writing, source of all kinds of mistrust and gossip, has filled my soul with grief, and to this day it sounds to me unbelievable. What I write a man who is conscious of guilt should take as a remedy, a conscientious man as preventive, and the indifferents-I pray that not many be found among you-as a solemn protest.
But what am I talking about? It has been reported that some among you receive money from candidates for ordina· tion, under pretense of piety, which is worse; for he who does something under pretense of the good deserves a double punishment, because he does that which is bad in itself, and he uses the good, so to speak, as an accomplice. If that is the case, let no one do this any more, but correct himself, for we must say to those who receive the silver what the Apostles said to the one who wanted to give some money for buying a share of the Holy Spirit: "Thy silver perish with thee!" [Ac 8: 20]. Lesser indeed is the sin of him who, through ignorance, wanted to buy God's gift than the sin of him who puts it for sale; for there has in fact been a sale, and that which you have freely received, if you sell it, you shall be stripped of God's grace as if you had sold yourself to Satan, whenever you introduce that shabby trade of yours into things spiritual and into the Church, where the body and the blood of Christ are entrusted to us. This ought not to be! I am going to tell you what the stratagem is about: those sinners do not think they are sinning because they have not received the money before, but alter the ordination
[of the candidates]. Now, whether they have received it afterwards or in advance, receiving is receiving anyway. Give up, therefore, this sordid income; it is rather a passport to Hell. Do not soil your hands with such gains which make you unworthy to handle the holy mysteries.
Hierarchs' Frustrations
BASIL TO "VILLAGE BISHOPS," LETTER 54,
(written at the beginning of his episcopacy, 370-371) I am most saddened by the fact that the canons of the Fathers are henceforth forsaken, and that their strict observance is driven out of the Churches. I am afraid to see indifference progressing little by little and the affairs of the Church becoming utterly confused. Clerics, according to a policy that had existed from early times in the Church of God, used to be received after a most exacting examination; the course of their life was scrutinized to ascertain that they were not rowdies, or winebibbers, or violent, but that they kept their vehemence in check and were able to reach that holiness "without which no one shall see the Lord" [Reb
12:14]. The priests and deacons with whom they were living conducted the inquiry and made their report to the bishop in order that the candidates be inscribed on the roll of candidates to sacred orders [1:4' 1:O::Yllan 1:WV lEpanKwv].
But now you have done away with this procedure and you have not even deigned to report to us. By so doing, you have appropriated the entire authority to yourselves. Through negligence in this case you have permitted the priests and the deacons to act from motives of kinship or friendship, and to introduce into the Church unworthy ministers as they pleased, without examining their life. For these reasons, one counts numerous clerics in every borough, and yet not one of them worthy of serving at the altar, as you witness yourselves, faced with a penury of suitable candidates. 1 see, therefore, that the entire situation has become irremediable, especially now that a great many are being inducted into the Church just to escape the military conscription. So I have decided to renew the canons of the Fathers; T order you to send·me the list of all the clerics in every borough and to let me know by whom they were received and what their manner of life is. Cleanse the Church from the unworthy ones and from now on examine and receive only those who prove worthy, but do not enlist them before you report to us, or
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know that he shall be held a layman [Aa'(Koc;. derogativeIy] who will have been received into the ministry without my approval.
Basil's letters 58, 59, and 60, written from Caesaraea, could be titled "A Family AUair." Basil's old uncle, Gregory, a Cappadocian chorepiscopos, had been censured by his nephew the metropolitan for some infractions 0/ church dis· cipline, like soliciting gifts of money jor the administration of sacraments, an irregular but unfortunately widespread practice at the time. Now Basil's younger brother Gregory, the future bishop 0/ Nyssa, feeling sorry for the old man, imagined to send to brother Basil a letter allegedly written by the uncle to apologize and beg for pardon-a neat case of forgery! But Basil discovered the fraud, and Gregory junior did not invent any better remedy to the imbroglio than forging two more letters! Basil, as could be expected, rebuked his brother and his uncle in no uncertain terms. The tone of letter 60, once Basil had affirmed his superior authority, softens considerably, and Basil continues to show a sincere reverence to the old churchman. As for brother Gregory, even after his elevation to the see of Nyssa, he remains for Basil the "little brother" and the prankster, well-meaning, but never quite to be trusted.
BASIL TO GREGORY OF NYSSA, LETTER 58 (371)
How should I dispute with you by letter? How should I scold you for your naivete about everything? Who, do teU me, falls three times into the same nets? Who is caught three times in the same trap? That would not happen to a beast!
Hierarchs' Frustrations
You brought a letter which you had concocted as if it were from the venerable bishop our common uncle. I do not know why you want to cheat me. I received that letter, believing it was a letter by the bishop. Could I do anything else but accept it? I have shown it to many friends, from the joy I had, giving grace to God. But the forgery was discovered, when the bishop himself [Chorepiscopos Gregory] denied having ever written that letter. It made us utterly ashamed; we prayed that the earth would split open, as we were all disgraced and enmeshed in lying and deceit. Then another letter was delivered to me, allegedly sent by the bishop himself and carried by your servant Asterios. Neither was this second letter authentic, as the bishop testified before our venerable brother Anthimos, who notified us. And there was a third letter, which Adamantios brought to us. How were we to receive what was sent to us by you and your people?
I wished I had a heart of stone, so that I would neither remember the past nor be ashamed of the present, so that I could bear the strokes, my head low, like the beasts! But how act reasonably after a first and a second experience, unless I were able to accept anything without inquiry? I am writing this to upbraid you for your simplicity-simplicity indeed behooves a Christian-but I do not see how it fits in this particular instance. At any rate, be on your guard for the future and spare me, for I must tell you frankly that in such things you are not a trustworthy servant! No matter who were the messengers, we have replied appropriately.
Now, if it were to vex me further, or because you had received the letter you sent me really from the bishop, here is the answer. It is likely that you have other concerns for the moment. You are my brother, you have not yet forgotten nature, and you do not regard us as taking part with the enemy. We have entered a way of life which grinds down our body and wears out our soul beyond our own strength.
All the same, since you started the war, you should take your stand and act accordingly. It is said: "brothers must help in necessity" [cf. Sirach 40:24]. If the venerable bishops do agree to a meeting with us, let them designate a precise place and time and send their own people to fetch us. I am
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not reluctant to go and meet my uncle, but if it is not done in the proper form, I shall not accept it.
BASIL TO HIS UNCLE GREGORY, LETTER 59 (371)
"I kept silent. Shall I always be silent?" [cf. Is 42: 14].
Have I to bear longer the unbearable pain of silence and not write? Shall I not hear anyone talking to me? Having per· severed thus far in this gloomy disposition, I suppose it is appropriate now to say with the prophet: "1 have endured pain like the woman in childbirth" [Is 42: 14]. I have always desired an accord by word of mouth, and always I failed because of my sinfulness. I could imagine no other cause for the present situation, were it not my conviction that I am paying the price for myoid sins by being estranged from your love. And when I speak of estrangement, I do not mean being a stranger to the first passer-by, but our being mutually estranged from each other, whereas you have been to me as a father since the earliest time. But now my sinfulness, holding me as under a dense cloud, has made me unaware of all those things. If I consider that besides the pain to endure what is happening no happy issue can be expected to this whole affair, have I not a reason for imputing the present situation to my own wickedness? If it is my sin that is the cause of whatever has happened, let it be the end of our troubles; if it is the result of some machination, the intended result was fully realized. This is why, being unable to contain myself, I have first raised my voice, begging you to remember me, and to remember yourself as well, for you have shown during all your life a greater protection to me than the protection of mere kinship demands. And now, do love our city [Caesaraea] for our sake, rather than bearing it a grudge because of us. If there is some consolation in Christ, if there is some communion of the Spirit, if there are some
Hierarchs' Frustrations
feelings of mercy. do fulfill our wish: put a stop at once to all that disgrace, prepare the beginning of a brighter future by being yourself a guide to others into what is best, lest they follow a road they should not take. Till now, no mark has been recognized in anyone which would distinguish him as clearly as the peaceful and conciliatory dispositions of your own soul. It is fitting therefore that with those qualities you would draw the others to you and let all who approach you be filled with the excellence of your mores as if it were a fragrance of myrrh. And if there is some resistance now, after a short time it will be acknowledged how good peace itself is. But as long as slanders and calumnies take place, suspicion shall necessarily increase and always become worse.
To be sure it is wrong for hostile people to slight us, and it is still more wrong that they should slight Your Reverence.
If we have sinned in any way, we will amend ourselves, once we have been admonished. But this cannot be done, short of our coming together. If we have not done anything wrong, why are we hated? Here is what I may advance for my own justification.
What the Churches sayan their behalf-they draw no great benefit from our divisions!-it is better not to mention it. To bring affliction to anyone is not my idea, but rather to avoid affliction. You will discover it yourself and tell others much better and more fully than I can figure out, for you saw before we did the damages inflicted upon the Churches, and you are afflicted more than we, since you have been taught for a long time by the Lord not to despise the smallest things. Now the damage is not limited to one or two persons among us, but entire cities and regions bear with us the same miseries. Must we then publish abroad what is being said about us? It would be fitting for Your Magnanimity to leave quarrelsomeness to others, even more, to uproot it from their soul if possible, and for you to overcome grievances through resignation. Vengeance belongs to anyone in anger, but to dominate anger itself belongs only to you and to those who come close to you in virtue. What I will not say is that if someone is angry at us, he unleashes his anger against some who have done no wrong. Therefore, whether
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by your presence or by letters, by an invitation to meet with you, or in whatever way you choose, do comfort our soul.
OUf wish is that your piety shine upon the Church and that you bring relief unto Us and unto the people as well, if only we may see you or hear your gracious words. If that is possible, it will be best; but if you prefer another way, we will agree to it. Only let us know your suggestions, that your wisdom may be of help.
BASIL TO HIS UNCLE GREGORY, LETTER 60 (371)
Till now I saw my brother [Gregory of Nyssa] with pleasure. How could it be otherwise since he is my brother, and what a brother! It was in this very same disposition that I did welcome him on his arrival, my affection for him being unchanged. Let nothing make me forget nature or contend against my kinsmen. Amidst my bodily ailments and the other grievances of my soul. I regarded the presence of your man [a messenger] as an encouragement. and the letters he brought from Your Reverence did relieve me still more. For a long time I desired to receive them, for the sole reason that I refused to add to the gloom by describing a quarrel between close relatives; it would give pleasure to our enemies, sadden our friends. and offend God. who has impressed the character of perfect love on his own disciples. That is why I must answer and beg you to pray for us and otherwise care for me as kinsman. Regarding what actually happened. since
I do not understand it in my stupidity, I have decided to hold as true the explanation you will deign to give me. But it is necessary that the rest also be settled by Your Magnanimity. namely our meeting together at an appropriate time and a convenient place; therefore, if Your Reverence accepts to lower himself to our humility and give us some word, either with other people or, if you prefer, in a private interview,
Hierarchs' Frustrations
we shall agree. Once and for all we have resolved to serve you in love and to do whatever Your Grace shall write us, for the glory of God. As for our venerable brother [Gregory of Nyssa], we did not want to oblige him to say anything orally, because thus far his word has not been confirmed by his works.
A group of three letters relative to the misbehavior of a certain Glykerios, a deacon of the church of Venasa near
Nazianzus, has been attributed by the Maurist editors to Basil, reproduced in Courtonne's French translation (Bude collection), and numbered 169, 170, and 171. They are more likely to have been written by Gregory of Nazianzus while he was the acting caretaker of the Church of his father.
See A. Cavallin, Studien zu den Briefen des HI. Basilius, Lund, 1944, pp. 81-92, quoted in the French edition of Gregory of Nazianzus' letters, 1/., p.170, and numbered 246,
247, and 248. We follow the Greek text of Gallay, letters 246, 247, and 248 of Gregory of Nazianzus.
GREGORY OF NAZlANZUS TO BASIL, LETTER 246
(written after 372) A fine task of indulgence and philanthropy you have undertaken, gathering together the captives of "brazen-faced"
Glykeriosfor the moment, that's how we'll describe himand trying to cover, if possible, our common shame! All the same, Your Discretion must learn of his case and put an end to the scandal. This swaggering Glykerios who imposes upon you, we had ordained him a deacon by the "laying of hands"
[X£Lpo'rov(a] to the local church of Venasa [Ou~vaaa],
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for serving the priest and supervising the work in that church.
And indeed the man, though he be of a rather difficult character, nonetheless shows some aptitude for this sort of work. Once appointed, he did as if he had never been assigned to this task. He gathered some wretched girls on his own authority and initiative; some of them flocked toward him-you know how young folks are inclined to do such things-and others he constrained and undertook to guide, assuming the title and attire of an abbot [aX~!la 'Tta'[pl · apx(ac;]. And he began strutting about without any right motive of piety, He aimed at nothing else but a means of living such as people would find any other way, and he nearly turned the entire Church upside down: despising his priest, a man venerable·by his character and his age, despising the chorepiscopos and ourself as negligible, filling up the town and the entire clergy with confusion and trouble.
Finally, having been admonished by us and by the chorepiscopos to be less arroganthe had even trained young men
[tyu!lva~sv] unto the same folly-he conceived a wild and adventurous enterprise: kidnapping all the girls he could, he waited for the night and ran away with the fugitives. This may seem to you awful enough, but consider the time: we were celebrating the local feast and naturally people flocked together from everywhere. So Glykerios brought along his
"corps de ballet," leading an those youngsters to dance around, to the great scandal of pious persons and the great glee of libertines or people always ready for gossip. But, serious as it is, this is not all. As I hear, the parents of the girls, who refused to be deprived of their children and tried to bring that "dispersion" back home, wailing and throwing themselves at the feet of their daughters, as we may well imagine-that amazing young fellow insulted and abused them, along with his gang of pirates. Let not these things appear tolerable to Your Piety. for the mockery affects us all. First of an, command him to return with the girls. He might be shown some indulgence if he comes back with a letter of yours. If not, do at least turn the girls back to their mother, the Church. But if you cannot, do not allow those willing to yield to continue being tyrannized in that manner.
Hierarchs' Frustrations
Persuade them to return to us, or we shall call God and men to witness that such a situation is wrong and contrary to the right order of the Church. As for Glykerios, if he presents himself sobered and having recovered a correct attitude, so much the better! But if not, let him know that he is deposed from his office.
GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS TO GLYKERIOS, LETTER 247
Till when shall you rave and persist in your evil counsel, provoking us and dishonoring the entire order of monks?
Turn back to God and to us confidently, for we wish to follow the example of His "philanthropy." We have rebuked you in a fatherly way; we shall also pardon you as a father: this is what we want to tell you. Many implore us on your behalf; your own priest, whose age and compassion we respect, morc tllan any others. But if you continue to stray from us, know that you have fallen from your rank and have parted with God, since your songs and your robe drive the girls not to God, but to the abyss.
GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS TO BASIL, LETTER 248
I wrote to you not long ago about Glykerios and the girls. They have not yet returned, up to this day. Why or how I do not know. I am not going to accuse you of managing this case in a way that would expose Us to criticism, whether you bear us some grudge, or in order to please others. Let them [GJykerios and the girls1 come back without
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fear; do vouch for this! It pains us to see these members cut off from the Churches, even though they would be rightly cut off. But if they persist, let the burden of it be carried by them. We wash our hands of it.
A long letter, atrributed to Gregory of Nazianzus (No.
249), or to Gregory 0/ Nyssa (No. 1), gives a vivid description of the mishaps 0/ one of our hierarchs in the inhospitable region of Greater Armenia and his unplanned meeting with Bel/adios, successor of SI Basil on the metropolitan see of Caesaraea. Helladios happened to be traveling in the same region and proved to be no more comfortable than the craggy district. The presumed date of the letter is the period between 379 and 382-383, when the province of Cappadocia, divided under Valens into Cappadocia Prima and Cappado~ cia Secunda, was tentatively reunified under Theodosills for a short time. (See the critical discussion in Gallay and Pasquali). The attribution to Gregory of Nazialtzus rather than to Gregory of Nyssa seems the most probable. The idelttifi~ cation of Flavianos, the addressee, is uncertain. He is likely to have been Flavianos of Antioch, a partisan of the Eastern bishops during the so-called "schism of Meletios," over against the party of Paulinlls, favored by the Westerners and Pope Damascus. As for Hel/adios, who appears in the letter to Flavianos as a boor without manners, his relations with Gregory of Nazianzus had at first been friendly: notes of Paschal greetings, letters of Gregory recommending his nephews the elder Nikoboulos and Nikoboulos, Jr., the latter being in his charge as praefectus mansionis, "master of communications," a kind of regional postmaster at the much frequented thermal springs of Xanxaris near Tyana in the second Cappadocia. But Gregory of Nazianzus had Itlrned sour (letters 219 and 220) when he reproached the metropolitan for failing to support the old priest Sakerdos against calumniators. The letter to Flavianos mentions a certain
Peter who had died recently, and whose anniversary was to
Hierarchs' Frustrations
be celebrated by ReI/adios together with the liturgies in honor of the forty martyrs of Sebastaea. G. Pasquali esteems that this Peter is probably different from the youngest brother of Basil and Gregory of Nyssa; the latter would not have missed identifying this "blessed Peter" as his own brother.
This again makes it unlikely that the letter to Flavianos should be atTributed to Gregory of Nyssa, and confirms the thesis in favor of Gregory of Nazianzus as the author of the letter.
GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS, LETTER 249, OR
GREGORY OF NYSSA, LETTER I, TO BISHOP FLAVIANOS
(379-382/3?) Our predicament, 0 man of God, is not good! The bad dispositions of those who raise against us a hatred unjust and unjustified are no mere affair of supposition or suspicion, but come out in the open as if they were a right move for the good .... Some people have insinuated that the Most
Reverend Helladios showed some hostility toward us and told everyone that I was for him the cause of the worst troubles. I did not believe these gossips, examining my conscience and the actual facts. Yet the same things were reported to Us from all sides in the same terms as if to confirm the rumor, and I realized that one should not engage lightly in a conflict which had neither root nor substance. So I wrote immediately to Your Grace and advised other influential persons to become involved. Finally, after passing some time with the Sebastenes [inhabitants of Sebastaea], who celebrated for the first time the memory of the most blessed
Peter and, on the same occasion, commemorated the holy martyrs, I started back to return to my Church. I was told at that time that Helladios was in the mountainous region nearby, celebrating the memory of the martyrs. At first I
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continued on my way. judging that it was more appropriate to meet with him in the metropolis, but one of my people came by and informed me that HeUadios was sick. Having heard this, I left my carriage and decided to visit him, traveling on horseback along precipitous and nigh-impassable mountain paths. The distance, according to the local people, was fifteen mile stones. I negotiated that distance with great pains, partly walking, partly riding; on the morrow, after having traveled part of the night, I arrived at daybreak at Andaemon [a locality in Armenia]-that is the name of the borough where Helladios sat in assembly with two other bishops. From afar, standing on a hill above the place, we saw the assembly sitting in the open air outside the church and we approached slowly, my companions and T, dismount· ing and leading the horses by the bridle, just as Helladios was leaving to return to his lodgings, at which time we arrived at the martyrion. Without delay we sent someone to inform him of our presence. Afler a few minutes, the deacon attached to his service appeared and we urged him to inform the bishop, so that we might converse with him at some length, as we were desirous to find an occasion of clearing the difference that alienated us. Hereupon T remained, sit· ting in the open air and expecting that somebody would invite me in; there I was, exposed as an odd spectacle to the people who came for the feast. ... After much ado the doors were opened unto us and we entered into Helladios' apartment, but no one of our party was admitted inside except my deacon, who sustained with his arm my exhausted body. I saluted Helladios and remained standing for a while, expecting he would offer me a seat, but he did not. So I turned around toward a bench which was there, and rested, waiting for him to address us with some polite word, or give us a sign from his eyebrows, but all our hope was de· ceived .... My mind was stupefied at all this. He would not even gratify me with some conversational phrases like "Are you all right?" or "How did you come?" "What for?" "Did it just happen or was it for some business?" "Were you so eager to come here?" ... Then I said to Helladios: "Perhaps my presence interferes with some medical treatment pre.
Hierarchs' Frustrations
scribed for your health. Should I rather leave you now?" He answered gruffly that he needed no assistance and I said a few words to quiet him down, if possible. But he declared that he had some grievances against us on account of many offenses .... I replied: "My conscience is perfectly clear in the matters that concern you. I hope to be forgiven for other sins of mine, but I have never wronged you and so I do not need ever to be forgiven for any sin against you." There he got angry and did not let me bring forth the proofs for my assertions .... It was past the sixth hour of the day [past twelve noon]. The bath was ready. The meal was being prepared. It was a Saturday and the feast of the martyrs ....
After the exhaustion of our journey, parched by the burning heat which we had suffered while sitting in the open before Helladios' door, after the dismal sadness which affected us while we bore his glance, he dismissed us for the return journey by the same way we had come, weary and weakened to exhaustion. With great pain we caught up with our company, having suffered in the meantime a serious ordeal: a windstorm, followed by an ominous thundercloud and a violent rain shower. We were drenched to the bones, for, seeing the cxtn:me heat, we had taken no precaution against rainy weather. Anyhow, through God's grace and after a good night's rest with our companions, we made it-aliveto our regions.
Relations with Armenians and Armenian Churches had always been a serious problem for bishops of Hellenic descent. Our three hierarchs had aimed at maintaining a friendly cooperation with the Armenian element, often unsuccessfully. They had to deal with a population Christianized of old, who saw no reason why they should relish the attitude of most bishops of Hellenic descent for whom the name "Christian" was synonymous with "Hellene." They tended to ignore the condition created by the plurality of populations under imperial rule. Gregory of Nazian'l.us' la-